Tag Archive for: Sugarbush ski

skiing simplified
Jon Weisberg

Short Swings!

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We get to the mountain, put on our boots, click into our skis and…you know the rest.

But how often do we stop to think about the people we rarely see; those who get the mountain ready for us and who keep it going?

Some will read this and tell themselves, “We pay for these services.”

My response is, “Yes, but take a moment to appreciate the people whose job it is to assure that you have a good experience.”

There are electricians who keep the lifts going and the lights on, and technicians who keep the snow guns running, That’s just to name a few.

We see some who prepare and serve food. But we rarely see the men and women plowing and maintaining the parking lots.

Patrol proactively stakes poles to warn us of hazards, control avalanches, and perform other dangerous tasks, all on our behalf.

Look up the hill at night, and you’ll see headlights from the grooming crew getting slopes and trails ready for the next day. Larger areas have late afternoon and graveyard shifts. Skill is required to operate those 10-ton mechanical behemoths. They groom in the dead of night in blizzard conditions when it’s impossible to see the trail’s edge. They groom steep slopes winching their cats around stanchions and groups of trees.

Last season, I spent an hour in a highly computerized mega-cat in the Dolomites. There, the entire trail network – which, end-to-end would extend from New York City to Chicago – is groomed every night by an armada of cats. The driver exhibited a quiet, professional pride as he explained his complicated nightly chores.

I left the cab with a new appreciation of what these unseen people do to make our skiing experience more pleasant.

The next time you go skiing, take a moment and look around. All the organization, safety measures, snow making, grooming, food prep, lift operators, reservations personnel – everything that makes up and maintains the infrastructure of what you’re about to enjoy – deserves our attention and our appreciation. 

What would we do without them?

Alta Patrol Featured in New Short Video 

Apropos of my thoughts on appreciating the people behind the scenes, click here to view a wonderful and informative video about Alta’s Ski Patrol. The area’s patrol has more than 80 men and women, with 20-30 working most days.

Helicopters Deliver Snow To French Resort

That’s just one piece of discouraging news about the impact of warming on the ski industry. Among other things, this CNN article reports on a study showing that by 2050, about one-half of the past Winter Olympics venues will be too warm to host the event.

Bumps in the Road Scholar Ski Offerings?

People tell me that they loved the Road Scholar alpine skiing trips. Good prices, convenient lodging, great camaraderie. A look at their current offerings shows one trip to Steamboat (CO) and another to Sunday River (ME). That’s much reduced from the days when Road Scholar had trips to numerous other areas. When I emailed the organization’s PR person to ask why these popular programs had been eliminated, she responded saying they currently offer 18 different ski programs and advised that I consult the Road Scholar website. There, I found a total of four skiing activities: the two aforementioned alpine trips and two X-C trips (VT and NY). She also said that Road Scholar is exploring new downhill destinations for 2021. We’ll see.

Vermont Adaptive To Build New Sugarbush Facility

Vermont Adaptive Ski and Sports plans to build a new $2 million adaptive sports facility at Sugarbush Resort’s Mt. Ellen. The non-profit hopes to break ground in the spring. Friends and participants of Vermont Adaptive’s programs at Sugarbush have pledged a generous challenge to match every dollar up to $1 million for the facility. Donations may be made on Vermont Adaptive’s website.

PhotoEssay on Killington Snowmaking

Last weekend, The New York Times ran this informative photoessay about snowmaking at Killington in Vermont.

Mikaela Shiffrin Graces Cover of March Sports Illustrated

Skiing’s female rock star is dubbed “the world’s most dominant athlete” by SI. This is her third time on the cover. The first was leading up to the 2014 Olympics; the second, after she won slalom in those games. She is all of 24.

Video: Runaway Truck on Ramp

Drivers in mountainous areas are accustomed to seeing runaway truck ramps. They’re generally located on the right side of long downhill roads. Truckers and bus drivers experiencing brake failure can direct their rigs to these uphill emergency ramps that have sand or gravel beds to help slow them down. This recent video was shot on the west side of Eisenhower Tunnel on the Colorado stretch of I-70.

Ski Area Safety Survey

We know that on-snow safety is an issue for our readers. Please take a minute to weigh-in on the subject by participating in a survey from the SnowSport Safety Foundation. See the article about the survey in this issue or click here to go directly to the survey.

How To Wash Your Hands

The New York Times just issued this video about hand-washing. It shows the technique advised by the Centers For Disease Control (CDC) and the slightly more rigorous and effective technique advised by the World Health Organization (WHO). A skiers’ hotel in Kitzbuhel closed because of coronavirus. Washing your hands correctly is a first line of defense.

 

 

Jon Weisberg

Short Swings!

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To some extent, skiing is a fashion statement. Current trends have an impact in what we wear, the equipment we purchase, and the way we ski. 

Over the past several seasons, I’ve noticed skiers taking run-after-run using the same high speed, up-on-their-edges, race turns. It reminds me of the 60s when people were wedeling straight down the hill, or the 70s when extreme bump skiing was the rage.

Good technique is the foundation upon which we develop a well-rounded repertoire of turns; one than can evolve into your own skiing style.

I know two people who raced in college and continued to use race techniques whenever and wherever they skied. I never learned to race and admire those who have. But the need to be first to the bottom, regardless of terrain, can lead to disaster. Both had serious breaks.  

Skiing is not a one-turn-fits-all sport. Endless terrain and condition changes require us to draw from a repertoire of moves. 

Age and physical limitations are changing the way I ski. But when I’m in the groove, each run becomes a form of personal expression: Mixing short and wide turns. Playing with the fall line. Slowly descending a cascade of bumps. Entering powder for a few weightless turns.

It’s not skiing to a template or keeping up or showing off. It is personal choreography, and it feels very good.

Jon in an undated photo with more hair and less waist.

 

It Wouldn’t Hurt to Take a Lesson

That’s the title of Jackson Hogen’s most recent Realskiers.com Revelation (click here to access). He builds a strong case for improving skiing skills in order to move beyond your comfort zone.

Vermont Boomerangs Back

Following a devastating January thaw, Vermont areas had an outstanding MLK weekend. A Ski Vermont news release reported that on Sunday, Sugarbush had the biggest day in its 61-year history and Jay Peak’s 600 room capacity was 100% sold out. Some of the mountains got about 2’ and temps dropped to form ideal snow-making conditions.

Alta’s New Website

Alta’s New Website

One of the many wonderful things about Alta is that when it makes a rare change, it does so thoughtfully. The classic Utah ski resort just introduced a new web design featuring simplified navigation, an improved mobile experience and interactive weather features. Some of the old features such as Photo of the Day remain. Click here to visit.

Mt Rose (NV): Free Lessons for 50+

Mt Rose on the Nevada side of Lake Tahoe offers Silver Ski Clinics designed for experienced skiers ages 50 and older at skill levels of lower-intermediate to advanced. The Monday and Friday clinics are free to season pass holders or $25 with lift tickets. Click here for details.

Aussie Crosses Antarctica on Skis

Dr Geoff Wilson Source: Facebook

Australian adventurer, Dr. Geoff Wilson, 49, skied 3,300 miles across Antarctica in 58 days. He used a kite and a sled in the historic trek, completing the journey with five weeks of rations remaining.

New Utah Training Facility

Utah Olympic Park at Kimball Junction in Park City opened the Mountain Expansion, a training facility for the state’s ski and snowboard teams. It features 5 alpine training lanes, a mogul lane, expanded terrain for freeski and board athletes, 11 acres of lighted terrain, high-efficiency snowmaking and a fixed grip quad. The facility is expected to expand in coming years.

A Different Hand Warmer Perspective

Last week, I advised placing hand warmers on top of the hands. That, on the advice of a ski shop sales person who told me that heating the hand’s blood supply would help warm the fingers. Nice concept but wrong anatomy lesson. The superficial veins on top of our hands carries blood back to the heart. Thanks to SeniorsSkiing.com subscriber, Roger Skugrud, for making the correction. A resident of frigid Minnesota, he advises positioning warmers in the palms where they’ll warm the blood feeding the hand and allow you to grasp the warmth when riding the lift.

New Pocket Instruction Guide

Bill Hernon’s Modern “A” Frame Ski Technique is a 45-page, small format paperback describing an approach to skiing based on a variety of “A” shapes. It is short and to the point and an interesting approach for self-learners. The book covers basic turns, skiing powder, bumps and Telemark turns. The author also recommends professional instruction. Click here to learn more and/or to purchase.

 

Jon Weisberg

Short Swings!

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AARGH!!!! What follows, unfortunately, is the tale of what NOT to do when renting in Salt Lake City through Airbnb or VRBO.

My wife and I decided to take a place for January through March. We know SLC from having lived there. 

The city is a terrific base with easy access to nine fantastic ski areas and more hotel, restaurant, and entertainment options than found in any individual ski resort.

Many have found decent accommodations through the aforementioned Internet-based services. Even if the places weren’t so clean or well appointed, they were there for only a few days.

What a disappointment! Cluttered closets and drawers; grimy bathroom; hooks pulling out of walls; electrical extension cords plugged into extension cords, plugged into more extension cords. And my wife, whose sniffer is more sensitive than mine, swore the master bedroom had the odor of men.

Fortunately, the landlord, a lovely and reasonable man was committed to salvaging the situation. We moved into the much smaller and more comfortable adjacent apartment at a lower rent.

But, the place feels like I’m back in college.

Seeking an alternative to this housing crisis, we found on VRBO a fantastic looking condo at Snowbird for $100 a night, minimum, 30 nights. We grabbed it. Within minutes a fee of $4,380. was posted to our credit card. Seemed like someone had a problem with arithmetic.

After HOURS trying to reach VRBO customer service, someone picked up the phone. He investigated and learned that the condo owner had added a $1000 cleaning fee. VRBO’s fee accounted for the balance. An hour later my wife’s phone rang; the condo’s owner profusely apologizing for our inconvenience and explaining that his HOA wouldn’t allow him to rent the unit.

It took several days to get a full refund.

Speaking with several senior skiers at Alta, I learned than many take three or four month apartment and condo rentals in Sandy, a suburb of Salt Lake City where rentals are about $1000 – $1500 a month, three month minimum. The places  are newer than many of Salt Lake’s options and the location is closer to the Wasatch Front ski areas (Alta, Snowbird, Brighton and Solitude). 

Remember how my wife thought she smelled men in the bedroom?  She was right. The landlord told us his previous tenants – there for several months – were a group of male oil refinery workers. He agreed its time to replace the housekeeper.

Where The Snow IS

Not this deep…yet!

Last Tuesday, Ski Utah, the marketing arm of Utah’s ski industry, announced that Alta and Snowbird got 6’ in the preceding 7 days. North America’s top ten snow magnet to date: Snowbird: 299”, Alta: 290”; Brighton (UT): 271”, Revelstoke (BC): 259.4”;  Jackson Hole (WY): 254”; Whitewater (BC): 242”; Alyeska (AK): 237”; Castle Mountain (AB): 227”; Solitude (UT): 222”, and Monarch Mountain (CO): 189”.

Snow Guns Fight Aussie Fires

Thredbo and Perisher Ski Resorts are deploying snow guns to prevent wildfires from destroying their buildings and lifts.

Sugarbush Deal Closes

Alterra closed on the purchase of Sugarbush Resort (VT).

Crystal Mountain Ends Walk-Up Ticket Sales

Crystal Mountain (WA) will no longer sell walk-up lift tickets on weekends and holidays. The area will release a limited amount of online sales and continue to honor Ikon Pass holders.

Your Own Ski Area: $1.25MM

Spout Springs, in Northeastern Oregon, is available for $1.25-million. The area has 250 skiable acres (800’ vertical), 14 runs, two double chairs, illuminated slopes, and two X-C trail systems. It is accessible from Walla Walla, La Grande and Pendleton.

Big Dump on The Big Island

Source: Honolulu Star-Advertiser 1/14/20

Hawaii’s Mauna Kea received 1-2 feet with snowdrifting to 4 feet. The snow fell above 12,000 feet.

Hand Warmer Advice

This, I never knew: When using hand warmers, place them on top of the hand where they warm the blood vessels and keep your fingers comfortable. This advice is from a helpful salesperson at the Alta Ski Shop at Albion Lodge. And all these years, I’ve positioned them against my palms! P.S. Many skiers extend hand warmer use by wrapping them tightly in food wrap for the night.

Documentary Offer Hope while Warning “Humans  Have Overrun World”   

This trailer for  the new feature-length documentary,“David Attenborough: A Life On Our Planet,” features Sir David, 93, warning “human beings have overrun the world.” In the doc, he reflects upon both the defining moments of his lifetime as a naturalist and the devastating changes he has seen. Honest, revealing and urgent, he bears witness for the current state of  the natural world.  The film will be available on Netflix this Spring.